30 STJPEESTITIONS. 



SO far as to recog'nise in several of our officers and 

 others in the ship, the ghosts of departed friends to 

 whom they might have borne some fancied resem- 

 blance, and, in consequence, under the new names of 

 Tamu, Tarka, &c. they were claimed as relations, 

 and entitled to all the privileges of such. 



Among* many superstitions held by the Prince of 

 Wales islanders, they are much afraid of shooting 

 stars, believing them to be ghosts which in breaking 

 up produce young ones of then* own kind. After 

 sneezing, they make violent gestures with the hands 

 and arms ; if a joint cracks, they imagine that some 

 one is speaking of them or wishing them well in the 

 direction in which the arm is pointing. 



The only tradition which I heard of occurs among 

 the Kowraregas, and is worth mentioning for its 

 singularity. The first man created was a great 

 giant named Adi, who, while fishing off Hammond 

 Island, was caught by the rising tide and drowned, 

 Hammond Rock springing up immediately after to 

 mark the spot. His wives, who were watching him 

 at the time, resolved to drown themselves, and were 

 changed into some dry rocks upon an adjacent reef 

 named after them Iplle, or the wives. 



According to Gi'om ague is prevalent in Muralug 

 during the rainy season, but is not much dreaded, 

 as it is supposed to remove former complaints, such 

 as the sores prevalent among children. At Cape 

 York I have seen people affected with this com- 

 plaint, but to what extent it occurs in that neigh- 



